


Familiar New Frontier Part Three

by Gul_Obsidian_Dragon



Series: Familiar New Frontier [3]
Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Genre: Implied M/M, Male Friendship, Post ASIT, Post Series, Work In Progress
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-06-25
Updated: 2011-06-25
Packaged: 2017-10-20 17:46:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,143
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/215424
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gul_Obsidian_Dragon/pseuds/Gul_Obsidian_Dragon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Julian has received Garak's letter (ASIT) and gone to see Garak on Cardassia. Part Three.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Familiar New Frontier Part Three

3- Making Refuge -3

Julian walked up just in time to hear Elim, “You are going to come with me and Julian. Go tell the others. That way your sister will know where to find you if she gets back here before we find her.” Kamar scrambled to go tell the other children, while Julian squatted down next his friend. “So Kamar is going to stay with us?”

“Yes, he’s sick and this isn’t a good place for him to be right now.” Garak replied.  
“Yes, one of the boys was telling me that his sister went to get him medicine, that she was supposed to return a week ago.” The only response he got was a quiet, repressed groan and a tightly grimacing face. “Elim, are you okay?”

A moment passed before Garak deflected the question, “I figured that she had been gone for a while. It explains why Kamar’s symptoms are as strong as they are and his clinginess.”

“These symptoms aren’t new?” Julian’s professional side had kicked in again.

“No, Kamar was born with a medical condition, Pottrik Syndrome. It flares up from time to time without the proper medicine. The last couple of times Kamar and Iliana have stayed with me until the medication did its job.” Garak replied sadly.

“Pottrik Syndrome, that sounds familiar for some reason.” Julian pondered aloud. “Do you know much about it? I might be able to figure out how to help him if I can learn more about it.”

“I don’t know much. I can tell you the symptoms that Kamar experiences, they aren’t pleasant. The only reason I can think of your hearing about it would be its similarity to Kalla-Nohra Syndrome. I understand that Bajorans and Cardassians suffer from that problem.” Garak sound almost clinical in his description, but his eyes betrayed his concern for the boy.

“That’s why I recognize it, that file clerk from Gallitep back when I was still new to the station. He said the treatment was the same for Kalla-Nohra, which is what he had. I treated him, but I don’t remember…” Julian trailed off as he tried to recall the treatment. He was so deep in recollection that he missed Garak’s silent grimace and subtle clutching of the abdomen while standing.

Kamar returned right as Elim finished composing his self, “I told everyone, are we ready to go now?” he no longer seemed to be worried about Julian’s presence. “Will you carry me Elim? I know I shouldn’t ask, Iliana says it’s rude, but…” the older Cardassian leaned down and picked up Kamar before he could finish the apology.

“Kamar, it is okay for you to ask me. It’s only rude to ask things of people that are not family or close friends.” Garak smiled at the little boy’s delighted expression.

“We are close friends?” Kamar asked.

“The closest. Almost family.” Elim assured him. “Now let’s get going, we need to get back before it gets dark.”

“Why do we need to get back before dark?” Julian was brought out of his musings by the statement.

“Mainly because there is not street lighting right now.” the grin that accompanied this statement was so amused that Julian was sure that his friend was enjoying dangling him along.

“Mainly?” Julian responded.

“Yes. Mainly.” Elim had apparently decided to play their old games.

“Meaning there is more.” Julian let a note of slight exasperation enter his speech.

“Well, there are some that would… shall we say, thrive in such an environment.” Garak replied in a nonchalant way.

“I see.” Julian replied. “And why not just say as much?”

“Well, what would be the fun in that, Julian?” the look he directed at Kamar indicated that discretion was necessary.

“Oh, I see.” Julian replied. Of course talking about the dangers of the street in front of the boy would upset him. The only family that he had left was missing at this very moment. “Well, I guess we should get moving then. It is no fun stumbling about in the dark.”

“Yes.” Garak seemed pleased that his young friend was still able to play their games. “I will expect the rest of you at the usual time.” There was a chorus of bye Elim, see you then, and take care mixed with the occasional bye Julian as they left the partially destroyed building.

As they walked Kamar thought about Elim’s declaration of friendship. It made him very happy to be considered “almost family.” He missed his parent’s a great deal, but it didn’t seem so bad when he was around Elim. A question occurred to Kamar, so he asked, “Are you and Julian close friends?”

Julian glanced at Garak to see how his friend would react to the question. They hadn’t really discussed their friendship much and it had declined a bit in the years of the Dominion War. He wondered how Elim saw their friendship now that Julian had come to Cardassia to help him.

Garak smiled slightly, count on a child to ask the really hard questions, “Well…” he thought for a second how to explain it to Kamar, “We used to be very close friends when we both lived on the station together, but it has been a long time since then.”

“So… does that mean you aren’t close friends now?” the boy was clearly trying to understand the statement.

“Noooo, not necessarily. It’s just that…” Garak was clearly struggling with the subject matter.

Julian decided to help him out, “It just means that we have to get to know each other again.” He glanced at Elim to see if he approved of this explanation.

“Yes, and hopefully we will become close friends again.” The older Cardassian glanced at Julian as he expressed his dearest hope. He received a slight, firm nod in response. A solemn promise had passed between the two men at that moment. They couldn’t be sure what was to come, but they both wanted to face it together as friends. Garak pondered why he was being so open of late. He supposed that drastic quadrant changing events could do that to a person.

Kamar wasn’t sure what had just been said, but he knew it was important. “So, are Julian and I friends?” he looked at Elim as he asked this.

Garak responded with a wide grin, “I don’t know. You will have to ask Julian that question.”

The boy looked over at the tall human walking beside Elim, “Well… are we? Friends I mean.”

“I would like to be your friend, if you want to be mine.” Julian answered the boy.

Kamar thought for a second before responding, “You are a friend of Elim’s, so I think I would like to be your friend too.”

“Well then, that mean’s we are all friends here.” Julian replied with his typical boyish enthusiasm.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and constructive criticism welcome.
> 
> I acknowledge that Elim Garak, Julian Bashir, Cardassia, etc. are the property of either Paramount or CBS, not entirely sure which due to the changes in 2006. The story is however mine, and done solely for entertainment purposes.


End file.
